


Say It With Doughnuts

by Owlix



Category: The Transformers (IDW Generation One), Transformers - All Media Types
Genre: Developing Relationship, Food, M/M, Misunderstandings, Pre-War
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-15
Updated: 2016-02-15
Packaged: 2018-05-20 20:21:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 956
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6023389
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Owlix/pseuds/Owlix
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The box of doughnuts on Prowl’s desk defied all explanation.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Say It With Doughnuts

**Author's Note:**

  * For [matchka](https://archiveofourown.org/users/matchka/gifts).



> Written for monkeysocks, who is responsible for the idea.

The box of doughnuts on Prowl’s desk defied all explanation. 

He stood there staring at it, statistical processor churning. But no, it still made absolutely no sense. No one at the precinct liked Prowl enough to spend their hard-earned shanix on fancy treats for him. To be more accurate, no one at the precinct liked Prowl  _ at all _ . He was universally despised by co-workers, managers, and partners both past and present. In fact, his current partner had recently taken up sarcastically  _ complimenting  _ him, a behavioral shift that Prowl was doing his best to ignore. It wasn’t impacting their work. It was irrelevant to his function.

Prowl’s statistical processor settled on a most-likely explanation; the box of energon doughnuts was a prank. One of his co-workers had left it as a mean trick, out of malice. It wouldn’t be the first time someone had played such a prank on him. Prowl would open the box and it would explode into a mess all over his desk, or something else equally pointless and frustrating. Unpleasant as it was, it was also reassuring; at least the explanation made some kind of sense.

Prowl reached out, tensing, and gingerly opened the lid just a crack.

Nothing happened. A scent wafted out from the box -- highly purified, calorie-rich energon, with hints of a whipped energon topping and mineral-dense sprinkles.

Prowl braced himself and opened the box with one swift movement. The doughnuts - half a dozen of them, all of Prowl’s favorite variety - looked delicious and perfectly normal. They sat in two neat rows, almost perfect save the doughnut on the middle-right which stuck out half a centimeter too far.

The doughnuts could still be a prank, but they’d have to be an elaborate one -- unlikely from the bunch of slackers at this particular precinct. The next-likely option, then. The doughnuts were intended as a gift to some other precinct employee, and they’d been left on Prowl’s desk by mistake. A sound theory, if unlikely -- no other desk in the building even remotely resembled Prowl’s immaculate workspace.

But the theory was immediately dashed by the hand-written note on the inside of the lid, specifically addressing the box of doughnuts to Prowl. Prowl recognized the handwriting as his partner’s.

It made no sense at all. Prowl’s head hurt at the sheer incongruity of it. Tumbler had no reason to give him  _ doughnuts _ . Tumbler could barely tolerate Prowl’s presence. In fact, he’d spent the past week delivering increasingly overt sarcastic jabs towards him -- mocking commentary about his appearance and demeanour, all delivered in the form of entirely-insincere compliments. No, there was nothing here that made any sort of sense.

In the face of such chaos, Prowl had to do  _ something  _ to help set the world right. He reached out a finger and pushed the crooked doughnut into alignment with its fellows. A bit of frosting got on his finger. He stuck the fingertip in his mouth. The frosting melted on his tongue. It was fresh and sweet and perfect. The doughnuts were absolutely not a prank, but a careful and very intentional  _ gift _ .

Something lurched in Prowl’s neural net, that ground-shaking disorientation when his statistical processor had come to a faulty calculation based on incomplete evidence. It recalculated. A new conclusion appeared on Prowl’s HUD, based on the additional evidence of one gifted box of doughnuts.

The gift made sense only with the alteration of a previously-formed, incorrect conclusion. Those compliments from his partner had not been sarcastic cruelty. They’d been sincere. Prowl’s partner didn’t despise his company after all. In fact, it was quite the opposite; Tumbler had spent the past couple weeks attempting to flirt with him.

Attempts Prowl had profoundly misinterpreted and repeatedly, intentionally ignored. Not thoroughly enough to dissuade his partner from another attempt, this time in the form of a very thoughtful gift of doughnuts.

The crooked doughnut was now in alignment with the others, but Prowl’s fingertip had marred the frosting. It was still out of place - an element of chaos. Prowl carefully removed it from the box and took a bite.

It was delicious and perfect -- Prowl’s favorite variety, from his favorite bakery, fluffy and sweet and still warm. Prowl devoured it, careful and efficient. But now the box was more uneven. Prowl carefully reached in and lifted the doughnut from the opposing side in an attempt to set things right.

 

By the time Tumbler returned from wherever he’d been goofing off or wasting time socializing, Prowl was just finishing the last doughnut.

Tumbler noticed the empty box immediately and smiled behind his mask, wide enough that it showed in his optics. He laughed, too, but Prowl interpreted the laugh as genuine this time rather than cruel, based on new data.

“You liked them, huh?” Tumbler asked, and then his optics widened in shock. Prowl realized that he was smiling back.

“It was a very thoughtful gesture, Tumbler. Thank you.”

The words clearly took his partner off guard. Prowl finished the last of the doughnut while Tumbler stammered out an awkward, halting response.

“Thank you for the compliments, as well,” Prowl said, once Tumbler was finished babbling at him. “I believe I was misinterpreting them previously. I apologize.”

“You -- what?” Tumbler’s face flushed, but he didn’t seem displeased. “I-- uh, yeah. You’re welcome, I guess. Look, let’s get to work, okay?”

Prowl had misspoken, apparently -- disobeyed another of these inefficient rules of social interaction he so often missed. But not too badly. Tumbler was disoriented, but not displeased. Probably the best possible outcome Prowl could hope for, considering their history of previous interactions.

They set to work on their next case. Prowl made a mental note. The next time his partner complimented him, Prowl would thank him.


End file.
